The game of bingo has been popular around the world for hundreds of years and remains a popular game for enjoyment in homes, churches, casinos and Native American gaming facilities. Regardless of the specific form and nature of the playing environment, however, the rules of the game remain basically the same: Each participant is issued one or more unique bingo cards with numbers appearing in an arrangement of rows and columns, usually a five-by-five matrix. An assigned individual, using a ball blower, cage or similar device, selects or “calls” numbers in response to which the players of the game search their cards for the called number and mark their cards accordingly. The first player to mark his or her card in one or more of certain predetermined patterns, usually five contiguous numbers along a vertical, horizontal or diagonal line, wins the prize for that game.
With the advent of computers, electronic forms of bingo games, such as those employing slot-machine style cabinets and video displays, have emerged and become increasingly popular. Many of these electronic bingo games offer the same play options as traditional card and ball bingo but with added benefits and features such as attractive graphics and sounds. A processor uses a random number generator to assign numbers to the spaces on the bingo card and draw the bingo balls from a predetermined range of numbers, usually one through seventy-five. A database stores the set of predetermined winning patterns, as well as the payout amount for obtaining such patterns. The processor automatically marks the players' cards appearing on the gaming machine's display in the event of a match between the numbers drawn and the numbers appearing on the bingo cards, allowing for the quick completion of game play. Two or more of these games can be networked together in order to allow multiple individuals to play a game of bingo against one another, using a common ball draw.
Electronic bingo games of this nature are well known in the art. For example, one system discloses an electronic Bingo game in which a random number generator selects a first set of a predetermined number of Bingo balls. the selected numbers are compared to the numbers appearing on the player's Bingo card. If a predetermined winning pattern is obtained, the player receives a reward. The random number generator then selects a second set of a predetermined number of Bingo balls. If a player obtains a cover all Bingo pattern (i.e., every space on the card is covered) from the first and second outcome sets, the player is entitled to a second award.
With the recent growth in the electronic gaming machine market, competition between manufacturers to place their equipment in available venues has become fierce. When selecting which machines to put into their facilities, the operators of gaming establishments give paramount consideration to their patrons' preferences. The problem that arises, however, is that players quickly tire of a particular game. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for new and innovative concepts associated with electronic gaming machines that serve to keep players amused and, therefore, willing to continue playing the game, in addition to attracting new players.